We investigated accessory cell function, antigen (Ag) trafficking, and uptake of immune complexes in isolated nasal epithelial cells (NEC) and airway epithelial cells (AEC), as well as in the two respiratory epithelial cell lines A549 and BEAS-2B. The NEC and AEC were capable of supporting Ag-specific as well as phytohemagglutinin-induced and an...

We investigated accessory cell function, antigen (Ag) trafficking, and uptake of immune complexes in isolated nasal epithelial cells (NEC) and airway epithelial cells (AEC), as well as in the two respiratory epithelial cell lines A549 and BEAS-2B. The NEC and AEC were capable of supporting Ag-specific as well as phytohemagglutinin-induced and anti-CD3 antibody-induced T-cell proliferation. We colocalized fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labeled Ags with human leukocyte antigen (HLA)–DR in A549 and BEAS-2B, utilizing laser confocal microscopy. Respiratory epithelial cells stimulated and unstimulated with interferon (IFN)- � were pulsed with FITC-labeled Ags for varying periods and evaluated for their ability to internalize Ag. In the unstimulated cells, intracellular punctate staining was evident at 60 min and persisted up to 120 min. In the IFN-�–stimulated cells (100 U/ml for 48 h), uptake occurred at 30 min, was maximal at 60 min, and diminished at 120 min. We conducted kinetic studies in the A549 and BEAS-2B cells, utilizing electron microscopy with colloidal gold-conjugated Ags (Au-OVA). At 15 min, Au-OVA was evident in the early compartments resembling the compartment of uncoupling of receptor and ligand. At 30 min, multivesicular bodies were labeled with Au-OVA, and by 60 min Au-OVA was present in the primary and secondary lysosomes. The FITC-labeled Ags colocalized with an early endosomal marker (anti-cathepsin D), a late endosomal marker (M6PR), a lysosomal marker (CD63), and with 3-(2,4-dinitroanilino)-3�-aminomethyldipropylamine Minimize

IL-6 has been investigated under numerous designations by several laboratories independently since 1980. Its multiple biological activities were identified through these efforts (reviewed in reference 1). IL-6 was first described as a secretory product of fibroblasts after induction for IFN-0, and was therefore designated IFN-(32 (2, 3) and 26-k...

IL-6 has been investigated under numerous designations by several laboratories independently since 1980. Its multiple biological activities were identified through these efforts (reviewed in reference 1). IL-6 was first described as a secretory product of fibroblasts after induction for IFN-0, and was therefore designated IFN-(32 (2, 3) and 26-kD protein (4). Other investigators later identified a factor involved in terminal B cell differentiation synthesized by a virus-transformed T cell line (5). This factor stimulated Ig synthesis in activated B cells and was called B cell differentiation factor/B cell stimulatory factor 2 (BCDF/BSF2) t (5). At the same time, a monocyte- and fibroblast-derived factor required for the growth ofB cell hybridoma lines was described and designated as hybridoma/plasmocytoma growth factor (HPGF) (6-8). After IFN-a2, 26-kD protein, BSF2 and HPGF were each cloned by recombinant technology (3, 9-13), it became clear that they were in fact identical (14-17). Finally, hepatocyte stimulating factor, a monocyte-derived product that induces the hepatic acute phase response, was also discovered to be identical to IFN-(32 / BSF2 (18). To Minimize

IL-6 has been investigated under numerous designations by several laboratories independently since 1980. Its multiple biological activities were identified through these efforts (reviewed in reference 1). IL-6 was first described as a secretory product of fibroblasts after induction for IFN-0, and was therefore designated IFN-(32 (2, 3) and 26-k...

IL-6 has been investigated under numerous designations by several laboratories independently since 1980. Its multiple biological activities were identified through these efforts (reviewed in reference 1). IL-6 was first described as a secretory product of fibroblasts after induction for IFN-0, and was therefore designated IFN-(32 (2, 3) and 26-kD protein (4). Other investigators later identified a factor involved in terminal B cell differentiation synthesized by a virus-transformed T cell line (5). This factor stimulated Ig synthesis in activated B cells and was called B cell differentiation factor/B cell stimulatory factor 2 (BCDF/BSF2) t (5). At the same time, a monocyte- and fibroblast-derived factor required for the growth ofB cell hybridoma lines was described and designated as hybridoma/plasmocytoma growth factor (HPGF) (6-8). After IFN-a2, 26-kD protein, BSF2 and HPGF were each cloned by recombinant technology (3, 9-13), it became clear that they were in fact identical (14-17). Finally, hepatocyte stimulating factor, a monocyte-derived product that induces the hepatic acute phase response, was also discovered to be identical to IFN-(32 / BSF2 (18). To Minimize

The software described in this document provides I/O functions to be used with Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer (MODIS) level 1 and 2 data, and could be easily extended to other data sources. This data is in a scan cube data format: a 3-dimensional ragged array containing multiple bands which have resolutions ranging from 250 to 1000 meters...

The software described in this document provides I/O functions to be used with Moderate Resolution Spectroradiometer (MODIS) level 1 and 2 data, and could be easily extended to other data sources. This data is in a scan cube data format: a 3-dimensional ragged array containing multiple bands which have resolutions ranging from 250 to 1000 meters. The complexity of the data structure is handled internally by the library. The I/O calls allow the user to access any pixel in any band through 'C' structure syntax. The high MODIS data volume (approaching half a terabyte per day) has been a driving factor in the library design. To avoid recopying data for user access, all I/O is performed through dynamic 'C' pointer manipulation. This manual contains background material on MODIS, several coding examples of library usage, in-depth discussions of each function, reference 'man' type pages, and several appendices with details of the included files used to customize a user's data product for use with the library. Minimize

Skin metastases are rare in the routine clinical practice of dermatology, but are of major clinical significance because they usually indicate advanced disease. We reviewed the literature on skin metastasis regarding recent trends in clinical presentation and diagnosis of the most common cutaneous lesions. An extensive literature review was cond...

Skin metastases are rare in the routine clinical practice of dermatology, but are of major clinical significance because they usually indicate advanced disease. We reviewed the literature on skin metastasis regarding recent trends in clinical presentation and diagnosis of the most common cutaneous lesions. An extensive literature review was conducted using PubMed from May 26, 2011 to July 16, 2013 relating cutaneous metastases. Articles chosen for reference were queried with the following prompts: “Cutaneous metastases”, “clinical presentation”, “histological features”, and “immunohistochemistry”. Further searches included “treatment” and “management” options for “metastatic breast”, “metastatic colorectal”, “metastatic melanoma”, “metastatic lung”, and “hematologic cancers.” We also reviewed the literature on the current management of melanoma as a model for all cutaneous metastatic disease. Our own clinical findings are presented and compared to the literature. Additionally, we highlight the most useful immunohistochemical studies that aid in diagnoses. Several novel therapies and combination therapies such as electrochemotherapy, vemurafenib, and imiquimod will be discussed for palliative treatment of cancers that have been found to improve cutaneous lesions. We review these notable findings and developments regarding skin metastases for the general dermatologist. Minimize

We report on organic field-effect transistors with unprecedented resistance against gate bias stress. The single crystal and thin-film transistors employ the organic gate dielectric Cytop(TM). This fluoropolymer is highly water repellent and shows a remarkable electrical breakdown strength. The single crystal transistors are consistently of very...

We report on organic field-effect transistors with unprecedented resistance against gate bias stress. The single crystal and thin-film transistors employ the organic gate dielectric Cytop(TM). This fluoropolymer is highly water repellent and shows a remarkable electrical breakdown strength. The single crystal transistors are consistently of very high electrical quality: near zero onset, very steep subthreshold swing (average: 1.3 nF V/(dec cm2)) and negligible current hysteresis. Furthermore, extended gate bias stress only leads to marginal changes in the transfer characteristics. It appears that there is no conceptual limitation for the stability of organic semiconductors in contrast to hydrogenated amorphous silicon. ; Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to be published in Appl. Phys. Lett Minimize

We show that it is possible to reach one of the ultimate goals of organic electronics: producing organic field-effect transistors with trap densities as low as in the bulk of single crystals. We studied the spectral density of localized states in the band gap (trap DOS) of small molecule organic semiconductors as derived from electrical characte...

We show that it is possible to reach one of the ultimate goals of organic electronics: producing organic field-effect transistors with trap densities as low as in the bulk of single crystals. We studied the spectral density of localized states in the band gap (trap DOS) of small molecule organic semiconductors as derived from electrical characteristics of organic field-effect transistors or from space-charge-limited-current measurements. This was done by comparing data from a large number of samples including thin-film transistors (TFT's), single crystal field-effect transistors (SC-FET's) and bulk samples. The compilation of all data strongly suggests that structural defects associated with grain boundaries are the main cause of "fast" hole traps in TFT's made with vacuum-evaporated pentacene. For high-performance transistors made with small molecule semiconductors such as rubrene it is essential to reduce the dipolar disorder caused by water adsorbed on the gate dielectric surface. In samples with very low trap densities, we sometimes observe a steep increase of the trap DOS very close (<0.15 eV) to the mobility edge with a characteristic slope of 10-20 meV. It is discussed to what degree band broadening due to the thermal fluctuation of the intermolecular transfer integral is reflected in this steep increase of the trap DOS. Moreover, we show that the trap DOS in TFT's with small molecule semiconductors is very similar to the trap DOS in hydrogenated amorphous silicon even though polycrystalline films of small molecules with van der Waals-type interaction on the one hand are compared with covalently bound amorphous silicon on the other hand. ; Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, 4 tables Minimize